Medical guidewires are used in numerous catheterization procedures to aid in placing a catheter and/or prosthesis at a selected site within a body lumen. One of the more common uses of guidewires is in the catheterization of blood vessels for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes. These guidewires may be extremely slender. For example, some guidewires can have proximal ends that are about 0.008 inches (0.203 mm) in diameter. A proximal end of a guidewire can be inserted into a lumen of a distal end of a catheter, which can also have a relatively small diameter, e.g., about 0.0155 inches (0.39 mm). The catheter can then be fed along the guidewire such that it is directed to a desired location within a patient.
Inserting the guidewire into the lumen of the catheter is often difficult due to the small dimensions of the guidewire and the lumen, and the relatively delicate nature of these components. To align the guidewire with the lumen, physicians sometimes rest the tip of the catheter and proximal end of the guidewire on their index fingers as they load the wire into the catheter. Such a technique, however, may cause the proximal end of the guidewire to perforate a surgical glove, risking infection and requiring a change of gloves before completing the procedure. This technique may also cause damage to the catheter distal region wherein the guidewire could be incorrectly inserted causing the wire to perforate the catheter wall, leading to a patient safety risk.
Further, some types of catheters have curved sections proximate their distal ends. Steadying these curved ends and aligning them with guidewires can provide an even greater challenge to physicians.